Obese patients forced to wait up to five years for treatment are forced to travel to countries such as Turkey for treatment, despite “horror stories” about patients in Ireland.
Despite 60% of adults currently being classified as overweight or obese, waiting lists have been growing for “years” due to historic funding shortages, says HSE national obesity clinician Don Don.・Professor O’Shea said.
And clinic development plans, including in Cork, are currently stalled due to HSE budget constraints and a recruitment freeze.
The scale of the crisis was revealed at the Oireachtas Health Committee, where its chair, Sinn Féin TD Sean Crowe, was left wondering how to get help for his constituents, who were told there was still a five-year waiting list. I told you what I did.
“People go to Turkey and hear horror stories about belly bands and things like that. People have actually died during these trips.
“The common consensus was that people are traveling because they don’t have access to service. They’ve been waiting for years.”
Sinn Féin TD Sean Crowe told how he tried to get help for his constituents.Photo: Gareth Cheney/Collins Photography
He said he received letters indicating voters were facing long wait times.
When he raised this with the Rollinstown hospital, “the answer I’m getting for that patient is that they’re still on a five-year waiting list for medical management.”
Professor O’Shea warned: “Right now, we’re treating all the diseases that obesity causes, but we’re not treating obesity.
“If we treat obesity, we can prevent these diseases.
“Funding allocated last year enabled us to eliminate surgery waiting lists in Laughlinstown.
“Waiting lists for medical management remain long as work is backed up.”
Like the patient letters received by Mr. Crowe’s constituents, the patient letters are for medical management, he said.
“It looks scary in a vacuum. Because we’re getting funding for the first time, we’re not getting the context that progress is being made and we’re making more progress than ever before,” he said.
The new HSE plans announced last year include six bariatric departments and three surgical departments.
But Professor O’Shea warned that a lack of funding for new developments was now threatening that progress.
Hundreds of people are waiting for treatment.
“It couldn’t get any stronger than this,” he said.
“Then you’re left with a model of care that doesn’t function or flow. It’s a model that doesn’t work.”
His concerns were echoed by Susie Barney, an advocate for the Irish Coalition for People Living with Obesity.
She acknowledges that people face a “five to six year” wait time before entering the service.
People will then be assessed and advised whether lifestyle changes or surgery are best for them, she said.
Susie Barney, Irish Coalition Champion for People Living with Obesity. Photo: Abby Traylor Smith.
“This is soul-destroying for them, and the service itself understands that this is not enough. This is part of the service.” [HSE plan] It needs to be addressed,” she said.
She advises people to join the waiting list to show they really need help.
“What we also worry about is that people will look at it and think, ‘There’s no point in applying, maybe I should go abroad.’
“Even if you undergo surgery abroad and return home, the cause of your obesity may remain unaddressed.
“They still need the support of a multidisciplinary team after surgery.”
She advises people traveling to inform their doctor.
“They should be very careful about where they go, and it’s not just because they saw on Instagram that someone went there and did something great,” she warned.
She is concerned that people think bariatric surgery can address obesity if it is a “chronic relapsing disease” that requires long-term support.
This week it was reported that one of Turkey’s largest medical tourism organizations had warned patients in Ireland about the rise in “fake” hospitals and fake websites.
